Contrary to popular belief though, it is not only about the suspense of winning by one hundredth of a second, but much, much more.

They are not as glamorous as, say, Cannes or the Oscars, nevertheless sport movie festivals follow a noble cause. And that is, of course, to carry the struggle, pain and joy of sporting achievements to the masses.

A total of 66 films from 22 countries will be presented in Moscow over the next three days.

Placed in two categories – International and Russian – the films will not only show the art of reaching an athletic summit. More importantly, they will pave the way for a dialogue, which will hopefully lead to a love for sport on a much grander scale.

“It’s vitally important for us that this festival is being held on the sidelines of the sports forum. Our government has decided to institute a national nomination for the best sport film. So the winner will receive some prize money too. We hope this festival grows into a real international sport cinema event and gets international recognition,” Vitaly Mutko, Russia’s sports minister, said.

The final phase of the World Sport Movie and TV Festival will take place in Milan at the end of October. That will be the culmination of a 14-stage, five-continent challenge, so the Russian directors at the Moscow Festival are keeping their fingers crossed.